Your team or your product design consultancy has developed a wide range of concepts, all of which are exciting in their own way. But now you have a problem … how do you choose between them when time and budget are tight?
Startup founders might be able to make a quick decisision based on which best aligns with their vision. But for larger businesses and teams in regulated industries like medical product design, product managers and design leads will need to justify their decisions. And that requires a rigour beyond ‘I liked that one best’.
We designed our Weighted Concept Decision Matrix to help solve this problem. The methodology provides a way to encourage cross-functional discussion, and ground decision-making in real-world requirements. Its effectiveness comes from weighted scoring against specific success metrics. These are typically pulled directly from the brief, market research, product requirements, or defined by executive teams based on top-level goals and requirements. This keeps feedback and decisions focused on what matters most to the project.
We’re offering this resource as a free download, along with a usage guide. It’s available as a printable PDF for in-person workshops and as an Excel spreadsheet for digital use and easy cross-team sharing.
Download and use this tool with your team during your next critical concept review.
What's inside
The matrix is a structured scoring table used to evaluate and compare concept options. Key assessment metrics are listed in the left column, with individual concepts arranged across the top row. Scoring occurs at each intersection, and totals are clearly calculated at the bottom for each concept.
How to use it
• Define the success metrics the concepts will be evaluated against. This works best when the metrics are grounded in thorough market research.• Assign weightings based on the importance of each metric. Conducting user research and talking to executive teams can help here.• Score each concept against the weighted metrics. Gather input from a multi-disciplinary group where possible, to surface a wide range of insights.• Review totals to support decision-making. Explore the differences in opinion within the team, to help make an informed and data-driven decision.
Note: Use the matrix flexibly depending on your situation. It works just as well as a tool for an individual to structure their own thinking, as it does for an entire team to contribute and analyse multiple perspectives underpinned by research and analysis.
If you’d like support facilitating a workshop, interpreting the outcomes, or taking your concept forward, we’re happy to help.
For a confidential, no obligation discussion, get in touch.
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